


The Pulsing World Above

by bottledbliss



Category: Daredevil (TV), The Punisher (TV 2017)
Genre: Definitely NOT Canon Compliant with Punisher Season 2, F/M, Frank is my soft boy and I love him but I can't seem to stop hurting him, Grief/Mourning, Hurt No Comfort, Loss, Not Canon Compliant, One Shot, Somewhat Canon Compliant with Daredevil Season 3, kastle - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-03
Updated: 2019-04-03
Packaged: 2020-01-04 04:37:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,351
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18336317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bottledbliss/pseuds/bottledbliss
Summary: Frank is still plagued by dreams. They're different, but just as bad.





	The Pulsing World Above

**Author's Note:**

> This came to me in a dream. I'm not saying it was a good dream.

It starts with the humming of a tune.

Frank sits up in bed, covered in cold sweat. He looks around the shadows in his room, but doesn’t find anything unfamiliar, realizing he’s short of breath, like he’s been running. The tune stops.

“Karen?” A whimper. He didn’t mean to sound like that.

“Hey, hey,” she comes running. “What’s wrong?”

Tiny drops of water glisten on her skin, sliding slowly down her body. Her hand wipes the sweat off his face. Water is dripping all over the bed. He wets his lips on her palm, kisses it.

“Don’t go, Karen.”

“I have to. I’m already on thin ice with Mitchell, skipping work will only make things worse.”

“Please.”

She bends forward and kisses his forehead. He feels her smile. “I’ll be back before you’ve had the chance to miss me.”

 

Frank wakes up with a start. If he concentrates hard enough, maybe the dream won’t fade so fast this time. He can still feel her touch on him. It only lasts for a few seconds. He gives his face a hard rub and gets out of bed quickly. For a moment, he imagined the sheets were wet.

He goes to work, like a good boy. Construction. It’s always construction because the sites are loud and distracting. And it’s been a while since he could count only on tearing things down to distract him. Even that doesn’t help anymore. But it’s okay; he does his best work at night anyway.

David calls him at some point. “There’s been a new development.”

“Can’t talk now. Send me the details.”

He could talk. He just didn’t want to.

 

She’s humming in the shower. The tune stops.

“Karen?” A whimper. Again. He must learn to control his voice.

“Hey, hey. What’s wrong?”

She glistens like a diamond. Frank wants to stop her from leaving. He’s tried before. It never works.    

“Don’t go, Karen.”

“I have to. I’m already on thin ice with Mitchell, skipping work will only make things worse.”

“Please.”

The sheets are getting wet. He can almost feel the fabric swirling around his legs, pulling him down.

She bends forward and kisses his forehead. He can’t see her smile, but he feels it, knows it’s bright enough to incinerate the world. “I’ll be back before you’ve had the chance to miss me.”

_Stay. Stay._

 

Frank jolts up. There are tears in his eyes. He doesn’t have time for this, he has to go to work. Just like every other day. Rinse. Repeat. He should take a shower, but can’t bear the thought of feeling the water on his skin.

David calls again. “You never got back to me.”

“Been busy. I told you, I’ll take care of it.”

“I know you will, Frank. That’s not what worries me.”

He can’t stand the sound of David’s voice, so full of concern.

“Don’t worry about me, buddy,” he chokes out. “There’s nothing to worry about.”

He hangs up without giving David a chance to respond.

Fisk is getting cocky again. He’s being very careful, not wanting to draw Daredevil’s attention and he succeeds in that department at least. Frank’s attention is always on him however. He doesn’t know it yet, but he will find out soon enough. He will find out, on a sunny day, when the inmates will be allowed outside. Frank wants it to be a sunny day, bright and beautiful. It will make killing Fisk even more satisfying. He’s been biding his time.

 

The sound of water. The humming. She hasn’t left yet. But she will.

“Karen!” He’s crying.

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

God, her eyes. She loves him. She loves him here. He should be able to make her stay.

“Don’t go, Karen. Please. Please, don’t go.”

Her gentle hand is on his face. “I have to.”

“Why?”

“Because I’ll get in trouble otherwise. I’m already on thin ice with Mitchell, skipping work will only make things worse.”

“Please, I’ll do anything.”

Her laugh is soft. It shatters his heart. “Go back to sleep. I’ll be back before you’ve had the chance to miss me.”

The sheets have turned into sopping serpents. If he looks down, he’ll see the watery abyss calling out to him. He would let it take him, if he had the guts.

 

He wakes up abruptly. He would cry, but when he looks out the window, he sees the sun is out. Frank can already tell it’s burning hot. Bright and beautiful. It’s time.

He could have set up even further, but he wants to see Fisk’s face as clearly as possible. He would have done it differently, eye to eye, if he had a way into the prison. The sniper scope is the next best thing. It means the world to him that David agreed to help with this. He must remember to thank him.

With the phone between his ear and his shoulder, he watches Fisk come out to the yard. He’s not surprised to see one of his lackeys bringing a small cell phone to him, handing it over with respect, like Fisk is someone that’s supposed to be revered. He isn’t. Frank knows that very well.  

“Hello, Wilson.”

“Frank Castle?”

“That’s right. I’m glad you recognize my voice.”

His finger is twitching close to the trigger. It would be easy to finish this now. But he has to make it last.

“To what do I owe this… pleasure, Mister Castle?”

“Did you look at the pictures?”

“What pictures?”

“After-” Frank grits his teeth. He can’t give this bastard the pleasure of hearing him unravel. Even if it’s the last thing he’ll ever hear. “After they pulled her out of the river. Did you want to see what she looked like? Admire the results of your work?”

He remembers forcing David to show him those pictures. It wouldn’t be real until he saw them. Maybe he should have left well enough alone, because he can’t get that image out of his mind. He owed her that much though. He had to see. He had to. It was his fault to begin with.

“Are you referring to Karen Page?”

The nerve. The nerve of him.

“You know damn well I’m referring to Karen Page, you son of a bitch.”

“Yes, I looked at the pictures. They brought me some sort of closure.”

Frank feels venom gathering in his mouth.

“I thought so.”

“Was she important to you, Castle?”

If it was any other person asking him that question, Frank would easily say yes. Christ, yes, she was important. She was what made the world go round. But because it’s Fisk, he can only snarl back. “I don’t know. Is Vanessa important to you?”

Fisk’s face falls. Frank isn’t going to touch Vanessa, he’s not that kind of monster. It was worth threatening him with it though, just to see that priceless expression.

“Nobody touches Vanessa!” Fisk screams into his phone.

“Yeah, that’s what I said about Karen,” Frank tells him and pulls the trigger.

The bullet finds the center of Fisk’s forehead and lodges itself in his head without much effort. When he drops to the floor, Frank feels pleased with himself. Not for long; the warm sensation won’t last the night, but it will do for now. Until she comes back. She might even stay this time. She never stays. But she might.

 

Water. The exquisite melody of her soft hum.

“Karen.” His voice shouldn’t be coming out in a whimper anymore. But it does. That will never change.

“Hey, what’s wrong?”

She rushes to him, streams of water running down her face, her shoulders, her arms. The bed is soaked. (Frank knows he’s crying in his sleep.)

“Don’t go, Karen.”

“I can’t stay.”

He knows she would, if she could. Her fingers caress his face. There’s no anger about her, no condemnation in her tone. She loves him.

“Please.”

She leans forward and kisses his forehead. He feels her smile on his skin and his heart breaks into a million little fragments. She loved him.

“I can’t.”

 

Frank wakes up with a start.


End file.
